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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27186307">under fear mountain</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/4wholecats/pseuds/4wholecats'>4wholecats</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Fire Emblem Echoes: Mou Hitori no Eiyuu Ou | Fire Emblem Echoes: Shadows of Valentia, Fire Emblem Series</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Animal Death, F/M, Prompt: Take Me Instead, Whumptober 2020, Zeke isn't very nice to some rats</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-25</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 03:41:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Graphic Depictions Of Violence</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>720</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27186307</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/4wholecats/pseuds/4wholecats</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A girl wailed loudly in the cell next to him, and though he remained silent, Zeke couldn’t help but agree. The chain attached to the shackles on his wrists jingled as he shifted, eyes tracking another rat that dared to enter his prison.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Teeta | Tatiana/Zeke</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Whumptober 2020 [9]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1959316</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>11</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>under fear mountain</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>im legit gonna be finishing this challenge in like february of next year at this rate dgfsjdfgsjdfgsdf...<br/>anyways its been a while i missed zeke. love this hot mess.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Nuibaba’s dungeon was freezing. </p><p>There were no windows, but its underground location made it poorly ventilated, with no protection from the chill that came with living at the top of a mountain. It wasn’t cold enough for frost to form, leaving the whole area covered in a slick, damp layer of condensation; the water from the air clinging to the walls and floors, as well as the people inside.</p><p>A rat scuttled over to sniff at Zeke’s boot, and it took an incredible amount of self control for him to not kick the vermin across the room. He merely gave it a rough nudge, and it squeaked in fear as it skittered away, squeezing through the bars that lead to the outside world. Zeke retracted his leg under the threadbare blanket. </p><p>Things had gotten… bad.</p><p>
  <em> “Don’t touch her!” </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Tatiana swatted Jerome’s hand away as Zeke yelled, and was rewarded with a sharp slap to the face. She froze there, head pointed at the ground, eyes wide in shock. Zeke growled and reached for the knife that was concealed in his inner coat pocket, intent of slashing the man’s throat; laws be damned.  </em>
</p><p>
  <em> Zeke was taller than Jerome, but the other knight’s strength was not to be underestimated. His grip on the knife was loosened by a quick punch that struck so hard that Zeke’s nose immediately began to bleed.  </em>
</p><p>A girl wailed loudly in the cell next to him, and though he remained silent, Zeke couldn’t help but agree. The chain attached to the shackles on his wrists jingled as he shifted, eyes tracking another rat that dared to enter his prison. </p><p>
  <em> Jerome’s hand was around Tatiana’s shoulders, and she looked as if she might crawl out of her skin. Zeke made eye contact with her through the haze, limbs awkwardly searching the ground in an attempt to stand again, to defend her from this vile monster. But as Nuibaba came into view over him, Medusa’s head manifesting mere inches from his own face, all Zeke could do was think a hasty prayer to a goddess whose name he had long forgotten.  </em>
</p><p>How long had it been? A month? Three months? Perhaps even more? His body was growing far too comfortable with the lack of food, and even standing up for too long made him lightheaded and dizzy. Dirty water oozed down the walls of the subterranean prison, and drinking it for this long was undoubtedly making him ill. Sleeping on the ground was standard fair for a soldier, but the witch was not kind enough to provide bedrolls, and the wet stones made for a poor mattress. The thin blanket was the only item of comfort he had, and even then, it had gone moldy long ago. Zeke coughed, idly wondering if overexposure to the spores would kill him before Nuibaba got the chance. Hopefully not; Tatiana would never forgive him for dying here. </p><p>If she was still alive, that is.</p><p>The mere idea of her dying made the illness feel all the more real. The knowledge that she was on the front lines with Jerome of all people was enough to make any reasonable person furious, and here… Zeke could do nothing to help her. He hoped, deep in his heart, that she would escape. That she would save herself and run somewhere far away, where the blasted witch and her gaggle of armed morons couldn’t touch her. His life was theoretically in her hands, but Nuibaba underestimated him. There was always a chance he could escape, or fight her and win. </p><p>Alas… these thoughts were hopeful and unrealistic. But daydreaming was really the only thing that passed the time these days. Minutes slid by like a swampy stream here. It was the end of the week, he knew that much. Nuibaba permitted him to bathe at the end of the week, so at least he felt clean. </p><p>The girl in the next cell screamed again, and Zeke did his best to ignore how young she sounded. The rat, the one who had dared to enter after seeing it’s brother treated so harshly, sniffed the frayed edge of the moldy blanket. </p><p>He paused, and as the girl wailed once more, his temper flared.</p><p>He didn’t kick this one. He crushed its skull under the heel of his boot.</p>
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